If new missions arcs are added, how should getting them be added realistically and for your enjoyment?

[DougGraves]

Old school was contacts and you had to be introduced to contacts.  No you can find contacts and even teleport to them.  You can call contacts on the phone.  You can get radio missions without going to a contact.  And you can get missions in Oroborous or AE.

 

So if homecoming was going to add a lot of new missions arcs, not just a few, how should they add getting them? 

• Is it worth placing contacts for each mission arc in a zone?  Will you go to the zone and talk to them?  Will you just get the arc at level 50 from Oro?
• Would having phone contacts be good enough?  You find a contact and talk to them by phone.  You see their picture.  They have a story and flavor, but you do not have to go to see them in person ever.
• Is a generic contact good enough?  Could the detective in each zone give you the arcs?  Or just get them from searchable a Crisis Monitor computer in your base or Oro?

 

I would like to see new mission arcs divided into story focused and action.  Story focused is like the new arcs they have created.  A lot of talking, running around, maybe being in disguise - stuff that you want to do slowly and pay attention to.  Story focused arcs would have a contact in the world that is part of the story.  Action focused would be like the newer task force missions.  Basically just combat, but more interesting combat than radio missions give you.  They would not need a contact in place, you should pick them up by phone.

 

[Sakai]

It might be nice if detectives offered some arcs. 

[EmmySky]

I think it'd be cool if they were searchable or 'happen upon' contacts like Laura Lockhart and that Tsoo arc guy also in Steel.  Also new missions accessible from a base computer or maybe a pocket d computer, central location with lots of options for which zone it'll happen in.  Also non-zone missions, just like the computer contact but it ports you too.  

 

I really like the Find A Contact button....makes it so much easier to stray off the old story arcs I have done to death.

[MetaVileTerror]

Crazy idea!  You know those walking Citizens in Paragon City and the Rogue Isles?  You can click on them, and they say things, varying from cute nonsense, to world dressing, to oddly out-of-character informative data (like how many times I've been "on the Prowl" . . . )

 

What if clicking on them could drop a Tip for a new Mission Arc?

[Lost Ninja]

Earn arcs from "Tip" like drops, doing random content in a zone (hunts, street sweeping, etc) and you find a... something that leads you to a new contact... maybe even have a short introductory mission/arc where you get to rescue the contact. Contact is then unlocked for it's proper content. Which contacts is unlocked from which "drop" should be at least semi hidden (in game fan sites are another issue), so you get them with a semi random appearance. But maybe unlocked with Kill Badges. eg: "You get a phone call/email from the contact who says that they have heard you have an especial fondness for killing Malta Titans, would you be interested in meeting for a mutually beneficial mission."

 

Perhaps even link it in to the rogue system where the arcs offered are different from the same contact dependent on whether or not you're good, bad or somewhere in the middle.

[Broken_Prey]

Random objects, like a bush or a mailbox. How I see it is you get a tip to check out this bush so you go to this bush and inspect it and find a clue that leads you to a mission. Next mission you get a tip that leads you to a different area like a park bench and inspect it and find another mission and so on. The last mission you could find someone and rescue them and they become a contract for you. 

 

Tip mission should lead to story arcs too, there are some but more would be better. As for right now they are one and done mission and you don't even need to do them because you can just go to null the gull.

 

Detectives should have arcs too. Giving out contracts is great and all but aren't they working on anything that they could use a little help with? 

 

Day jobs should unlock contracts too. Like you get an email from a coworker asking for help and it leads to something bigger. 

[Xeres]

Ah, well this may take a little more resources than needed but somehow there should be sort of a tracker of what arcs you have done and which you've missed.  I think this is already in the game in a manner.  So let's say you've been doing a lot of Skulls arcs but not as much Vahzilok.  At some point there should be almost like an "emergency" contact that pops up which describes the almost-out-of-control-threat-good-thing-I-contacted-you Vahzilok arc.  This arc should have it's difficulty increased (still affected by the field analyst) based upon how out of control it is.  So let's say you're level 18 and you get this Vahzilok emergency contact which is a 10-15 arc.  The difficulty should increase a little.  If you get this in the 20s the difficulty goes up a little much more.  All optional though.

Edited November 6, 2019 by Xeres

[TyrantMikey]

On 11/5/2019 at 9:13 PM, MetaVileTerror said:

Crazy idea!  You know those walking Citizens in Paragon City and the Rogue Isles?  You can click on them, and they say things, varying from cute nonsense, to world dressing, to oddly out-of-character informative data (like how many times I've been "on the Prowl" . . . )

 

What if clicking on them could drop a Tip for a new Mission Arc?

I think it's Champions that does something like this. If you save a citizen while street sweeping, there's a chance they will give you a lead on a crime being committed. You can then run off and stop the crime in progress.

 

It's kind of nifty.

Edited November 7, 2019 by TyrantMikey

[TyrantMikey]

On 11/6/2019 at 10:14 AM, Broken_Prey said:

Random objects, like a bush or a mailbox. How I see it is you get a tip to check out this bush so you go to this bush and inspect it ...

Oh no you don't. With my luck, a random bush is a Devouring Earth. I don't trust those guys as far as I can throw them.

[Shred Monkey]

I think dropping new contacts into the game makes sense.  Kind of like, "hey... hero, I work for Longbow... we're contacting you because we need your help."

[Lost Ninja]

3 hours ago, TyrantMikey said:

Oh no you don't. With my luck, a random bush is a Devouring Earth. I don't trust those guys as far as I can throw them.

That''s good luck IMO... I clicked a random bush and got Eochai... 😕

[Clave Dark 5]

16 hours ago, TyrantMikey said:

Oh no you don't. With my luck, a random bush is a Devouring Earth. I don't trust those guys as far as I can throw them.

And don't forget those sneaky tree-looking Fir Bolg!

[Clave Dark 5]

A serious answer, I'd say just drop a few new people around and also make some Tips.  I don't see that we need to redesign any wheels here.

[DougGraves]

9 hours ago, Clave Dark 5 said:

A serious answer, I'd say just drop a few new people around and also make some Tips.  I don't see that we need to redesign any wheels here.

 

By a few new people do you mean one per arc, or they would each have many arcs?

[Lost Ninja]

4 hours ago, DougGraves said:

 

By a few new people do you mean one per arc, or they would each have many arcs?

Does it matter?

 

As long as they're rooted in the 21st century as opposed to the 1930s, so have phones and email.

[DougGraves]

35 minutes ago, Lost Ninja said:

Does it matter?

 

As long as they're rooted in the 21st century as opposed to the 1930s, so have phones and email.

 

Why put an NPC in the city at all if you just want to contact them using phones and email?

[EmmySky]

For those of us who dont mind the 1930s, although I do wish the detectives had homing pigeons or SOME way to contact them besides running across town every 10 minutes.

[boggo2300]

I would love some variation of the Bat Signal...

[Lost Ninja]

3 hours ago, DougGraves said:

 

Why put an NPC in the city at all if you just want to contact them using phones and email?

Because that makes sense. You know like 99% of all the other mission arc contacts. Just instead of having us run all over to ask someone who we have already been introduced to (and have contact details for), remove that step from mission arcs. It's a time waster, which if you're trying to make people play for longer and consequently pay more (to play) is fine. That's no longer the case. There are plenty of reasons why you should want to run round the cities/isles, but doing pointless make work isn't a good reason (IMO).

[Lost Ninja]

2 hours ago, EmmySky said:

For those of us who dont mind the 1930s, although I do wish the detectives had homing pigeons or SOME way to contact them besides running across town every 10 minutes.

For all I care two tins and a bit of string. Just get rid of the pointless make work.

 

Not done missions in Cimeroa in an age (not since it was added pretty much) but don't you get the option to "phone" your ancient roman mission giver?

[EmmySky]

I only played Cim once or twice when it was brand spanking new.....havent been back yet.

[TyrantMikey]

I wouldn't mind if the police radio was moved out of the contacts window, and moved into a separate UI element of its own. Something small and unobtrusive, that initially appeared in the lower right-hand corner of the screen. Perhaps an icon of a radio. 

 

When new missions are available, it vibrates, or some other animation is applied to it. You can click on it, and talk to whomever is offering you the mission. And the kicker is, it's not just detectives that are offering you missions. Any contact, new or old, should be able to reach you through it, and kick off a mission or story arc.

 

It wouldn't replace your contacts list, but augment it.

[Clave Dark 5]

"The usual methods" to clarify.  "Some Dude has reached out to you to talk to you about The Warriors, you can find him in King's Row" etc.  Again, the game's already got its usual ways, no need to change them.

[DougGraves]

17 minutes ago, Clave Dark 5 said:

"The usual methods" to clarify.  "Some Dude has reached out to you to talk to you about The Warriors, you can find him in King's Row" etc.  Again, the game's already got its usual ways, no need to change them.

 

The game has its usual methods.  Contacts that you go to on the map, the AE tool, the Oroborous search, radio missions, and tips.

 

Which one do you prefer?

[Clave Dark 5]

40 minutes ago, DougGraves said:

 

The game has its usual methods.  Contacts that you go to on the map, the AE tool, the Oroborous search, radio missions, and tips.

 

Which one do you prefer?

I'm not picky.  🙂  "Real" contacts and missions and tips should be real world though and not Ouro or AE, seems to me.